"ABCDEFU" (stylized in

all lowercase Letter case is the distinction between the letters that are in larger uppercase or capitals (or more formally ''majuscule'') and smaller lowercase (or more formally ''minuscule'') in the written representation of certain languages. The writing ...

, also known by its radio edited title "ABC") is the major-label debut single by American singer

Gayle Gayle or Gayl may refer to: People * Gayle (given name), people with the given name * Gayle (surname), people with the surname * Gayle (singer) (born 2004), American singer-songwriter Places * Gayle, North Yorkshire, England * Gayle, Jamaica, a ...

, released on August 13, 2021, through

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

and Arthouse Records. It was co-written by Gayle with Sara Davis and David Pittenger, and produced by

Pete Nappi Ocean Park Standoff is an American pop band made up of Samantha Ronson, Pete Nappi and Ethan Thompson. Their debut EP was released on Hollywood Records on March 3, 2017. History The three band members originally met at a songwriting session in 2 ...

. The song is the lead single from Gayle's debut EP ''A Study of the Human Experience Volume One''. "ABCDEFU" reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Global 200 and peaked at number three on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "ABCDEFU" topped the charts in Austria, Belgium (Wallonia), Finland, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. In 2022 the song was nominated for Song of the Year for the

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Background and promotion

The song marks the first single release since the Nashville-based singer signed with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

/ Arthouse Records in 2021. On her

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account, Gayle uploaded a video where she stated "I'm out of

ong Ong or ONG may refer to: Arts and media * Ong's Hat, a collaborative work of fiction * “Ong Ong”, a song by Blur from the album The Magic Whip Places * Ong, Nebraska, US, city * Ong's Hat, New Jersey, US, ghost town * Ong River, Odisha, ...

ideas" and asked followers to comment song ideas. "Comment anything and I'll try my best to turn it into a song." Nancy Berman, a marketing manager at Atlantic Records commented asking for a song that incorporates the alphabet. Within a few days, Gayle uploaded another video of her strumming the chorus of the song. According to Gayle, the song "came from a place of trying so hard to be the nice, respectful ex-girlfriend, to the point where it was negatively affecting me". In an interview with ''Tongue Tied Mag'', Gayle explained the inspiration behind the song: "After the breakup, I was trying really, really hard to be a nice person—like, overcompensating for it—like, the week after we broke up, I called him and was, like, 'Hey, bud!' and 'What's up, my friend?!'". On March 31, 2021, Gayle stated on Instagram that she had

dislocated A joint dislocation, also called luxation, occurs when there is an abnormal separation in the joint, where two or more bones meet.Dislocations. Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford. Retrieved 3 March 2013 A partial dislocation is refe ...

her

middle finger The middle finger, long finger, second finger, third finger, toll finger or tall man is the third digit of the human hand, located between the index finger and the ring finger. It is typically the longest digit. In anatomy, it is also called ...

, and the X-ray scan from the hospital was used for the single's cover art. The song achieved mainstream success within a few months after release, surpassing over 500 million global streams as of March 2022. Gayle has since released different versions of the song, including the demo, a "chill version", and an "angrier version".

Music video

The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

was released on August 13, 2021. The video was shot via a

camcorder A camcorder is a self-contained portable electronic device with video and recording as its primary function. It is typically equipped with an articulating screen mounted on the left side, a belt to facilitate holding on the right side, hot-swa ...

at a

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to evoke early 2000s home videos. In the music video, the singer and her friends visit and look around her ex's home.

Composition

According to the digital sheet music published at musicnotes.com by Warner Music Publishing, "ABCDEFU" is written in the

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

E major E major (or the key of E) is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor and its parallel minor is E minor. Its enharmonic equivalent, ...

with a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

of 122

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

. The song's title and lyrical content are a

play on words Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, phone ...

incorporating the first six letters of the

alphabet An alphabet is a standardized set of basic written graphemes (called letters) that represent the phonemes of certain spoken languages. Not all writing systems represent language in this way; in a syllabary, each character represents a syll ...

with the addition of the twenty-first to form an

initialism An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...

for the profane phrase Fuck yoU. Sonically the song is characterized by "minimalistic sonics" and "jagged guitar work", while it "reaches its climax with a massive sing-a-long chorus".

Critical reception

Gayle's song has been a viral hit on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. Emily Zemler of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' praised the passion of Gayle's live renditions of the piece. April Bredael of ''Tongue Tied Magazine'' thought the song "adds to a growing list of accomplishments" of the singer with tracks that are "authentic, honest, and unapologetic".

Track listing

Digital download and streaming (Nicer version) # "ABC" – 2:48 ;Digital download and streaming (Demo version) # "ABCDEFU" – 2:35 Digital download and streaming (Chill version) # "ABCDEFU" – 2:56 Digital download and streaming (Angrier version) # "ABCDEFU" – 2:39 Digital download and streaming (featuring

Royal & the Serpent Ryan Jillian Santiago (born May 25, 1994), known professionally as Royal & the Serpent, is an American singer and songwriter. Early life A New Jersey native, Ryan Santiago was born on May 25, 1994. She was raised both Catholic and Jewish. Sant ...

) # "ABCDEFU" – 2:49 Digital download and streaming (The Wild Remix) # "ABC" – 3:02

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2021 singles 2021 songs Atlantic Records singles Billboard Global 200 number-one singles Billboard Global Excl. U.S. number-one singles Gayle (singer) songs Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in Austria Number-one singles in Finland Number-one singles in Germany Number-one singles in Malaysia Number-one singles in Norway Number-one singles in Sweden Number-one singles in Switzerland Songs written by Gayle (singer) Ultratop 50 Singles (Wallonia) number-one singles UK Singles Chart number-one singles